LONGMONT - Everyone may love a baby - but not one screaming at the movies, on the hiking trail or even at some play groups.

Enter Moxie Moms , a catch-all parent/child association that in November debuted in Boulder to go together where woman and child normally won't go alone, according to Susan Lavelle, Moxie Moms president and founder.

For instance, in mid-January the growing group of moms brought their babies along to view "Mona Lisa Smile" at a reserved screening in Boulder's BaseMar Twin theater.

Besides saving themselves a baby-sitting bill and avoiding the ire of moviegoers who bristle at a baby's squeaks and squawks, each parent got a $3 Moxie Moms discount.

The annual $50 Moxie Moms membership currently nets a 15 percent discount at nearly all of the 29 local participating retailers, service providers and child activity centers, said Lavelle, 37. 

"Sometimes it's not as much of a money savings, but an availability issue," she explained.

For instance, partnerships with businesses such as Clementine Art Studio in Boulder open doors to non-members for special Moxie Moms -geared classes.  Moxie Moms special events, she continued, give parents good reasons to branch out during a time that can otherwise become more about pulling in.

"There are a lot of shy moms out there," Lavelle explained.

Even outgoing moms worry about making waves with a little one in public places. That explains in part why Longmont resident and part-time Boulder County social worker Suzanne Daniels, 33, joined Moxie Moms last week with her toddler daughter, Isabela.

"It's great being able to find a group of people who don't mind if your 2-year-old loses it right in the middle of an activity," she said.

This spring, the group will launch stroller fitness and personal training with an emphasis in pre- and postnatal fitness to give members exercise options beyond hikes, according to Lavelle.

She also plans on providing ways for Moxie Moms members to support women-and family-oriented charities via pledge walks and runs. 

Though Boulder-centric now - 175 of the organization's 219 members live there and only a dozen live in Longmont - Moxie Moms last month secured its first Longmont partner, Sammy Bear Activity Center, a parent/child drop-in play center. 

"I'm very proactive about partnering with other parent-oriented,
community-minded organizations," said Sammy Bear co-owner and new mother Kelli Epstein, 32. "The main correlation between us is, once again, that moms are always looking for community and a place to connect. Moxie Moms is the clearing house, and we're the venue."

To establish other Longmont partners, Lavelle found volunteers, people she calls city leaders. Kimberly Taylor, 30, is a  stay-at-home first-time Longmont mom of 15-month-old Connor.
"It's a great idea," she said. "I wish I'd thought of it first."  It started perking for Lavelle last September when her daughter Isabella was just more than a year old. Her husband Joe, who has an MBA and business experience, helped her put it on paper, she said.

Today, Moxie Moms keeps an easy-access, Internet-based event calendar and continues to try to live up to its name.

"People say, 'That girl's got a lot of moxie,'" Lavelle said. "What's great about that name is that if you don't know what it means - a lot of times, you want to know. It is what a mom is."

For more information, visit www.moxie-moms.com